Cheap Fix: First Saturdays at the Brooklyn Museum

This Joint is Jumpin'

Hubs and I crossed the East River recently to experience one of the Brooklyn Museum’s infamous First Saturdays. The monthly event is a cheapskate’s dream: free music, lectures, performances, and art all under one roof. Plus there are lots of inexpensive restaurants and bars nearby. Pocketbooks, rejoice!

The museum crams a lot of entertainment into the six hour program. April’s lineup included a jazz band, a screening of Wuthering Heights, a life drawing session and several curator talks, among other activities. However, many of the sessions have ticketing restrictions.  The Brooklyn Museum’s website lists the times that tickets are made available for each event. I highly recommend that you find yourself in line at the alloted time. We really wanted to see the Kenny Muhammad concert, but the tickets were gone before our 5 train had even hit City Hall.

We decided to ease our disappointment with some dinner. The museum cafe is open during First Saturdays, but we were in the mood for something a bit more substantial than wraps and sandwiches. There are several great restaurants on Washington Avenue, just across the street from the museum. We decided on a small family-owned Greek spot named Teddy’s. It was crazy delicious.

Pitstop at Teddy's

After getting hyped up on hummus and red wine, we started our tour with the reOrder installation by Situ Studio. The glowing mushroom structures have transformed the Great Hall into a sci-fi plaza for patrons to congregate and hang out.

reOrder by Situ Studio

Next we made our way to the third floor. If possible, I highly recommend taking the stairs to navigate the many floors of the Brooklyn Museum on First Saturdays. The line for the elevator was long and slow. The third floor is the sight of the First Saturday dance parties. This particular weekend the hilarious DJ duo Andrew/Andrew held court, playing a range of pop favorites.

Andrew/Andrew

We bypassed the dance floor to catch a glimpse of the Egyptian galleries. However, it was really hard to appreciate ancient art with the steady thump of Rhianna in the background. We eventually abandoned our cause and moved on to the fourth floor. I was really excited to see the Lorna Simpson exhibit and the permanent display of The Dinner Party.

The Dinner Party by Judy Chicago.

By the time we left the fourth floor, the museum was really crowded. The third floor dance party was in full swing and the lobby bar was swarmed.

Club Brooklyn Museum

We had a great time at the Brooklyn Museum’s First Saturday. We loved the performances, the people watching, and the dancing. The only thing we didn’t really enjoy was the art. The museum is just too crowded to really engage with the exhibitions during First Saturdays. I suggest that you visit the event in search of fun and save another day for your in-depth perusal of the galleries. Besides, it’s kind of cool to have a night at the museum that revolves around everything but the collection.

The next Target First Saturday will be on May 7th. Check the Brooklyn Museum’s website for updates about the night’s activities.

Condition Report: Cleopatra’s Needle

An Egyptian Official is threatening to take back an obelisk that his country gifted the United States nearly 130 years ago if New York doesn’t start taking better care of it. Affectionately known as Cleopatra’s Needle, the 3500 year old artifact was given to America to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal. The structure was installed in Central Park in 1881.

According to Time Magazine, the secretary general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Zahi Hawass, sent a letter to Mayor Bloomberg and the Central Park Conservancy saying that the obelisk has not been adequately maintained.

Hawass stated:

I am glad that this monument has become such an integral part of New York City, but I am dismayed at the lack of care and attention that it has been given. Recent photographs that I have received show the severe damage that has been done to the obelisk, particularly to the hieroglyphic text, which in places has been completely worn away. I have a duty to protect all Egyptian monuments whether they are inside or outside of Egypt. If the Central Park Conservancy and the City of New York cannot properly care for this obelisk, I will take the necessary steps to bring this precious artifact home and save it from ruin.

The New York Times says that the city contends that the obelisk is just fine.

The paper reports:

In a statement, Jonathan Kuhn, the director of art and antiquities for the Parks and Recreation Department, cited a Metropolitan Museum of Art study from the 1980s that concluded that the granite was “largely inert” and that the damage to the inscriptions took place before the 20th century. Mr. Kuhn said the city was monitoring the obelisk’s condition and there was “no evidence at this point of any significant ongoing erosion.”

Do you think Egypt has a case? Should New York be taking steps to better protect the obelisk?

Related Reading:

The New York City Department of Parks & Recreation outlines the history of the Obelisk

Click here to read a translation of the hieroglyphs on the New York and London Obelisks

Did you know that the city of Berlin gave the city of San Antonio a bronze bear statue? See the bear and more fun international presents on this list of gifts from other countries.